Clamp for supports for solid



Sept. 8, 1953 w. STAHN ET AL 2,651,097

' CLAMP FOR SUPPORTS FOR SOLID CEILINGS Filed June 26, 1951 5 5 fimmgl lap-L5G II I A I,\ l 7' 1 1 23 l .2

L f7 6a i 4 I m m f ATTORNEYS Patented Sept. 8, 1953 CLAMP FOB. SUPPORTS FOR SOLID CEILINGS Willy Stahn and Hermann Wandke, Lubeck, Germany a Application June 26, 1951, Serial No. 233,645

In Germany March 9, 1950 2 Claims. 1

The present invention relates to improvements in clamps for supports for solid ceilings.

In the manufacture of solid ceilings of reinforced concrete or of hollow bodies having reinforced concrete ribs in between them, there are required transverse structure members commonly known as shell supports. Until now, in practical operation, the shell supports were made of wood, iron or steel which had to be cut to the size of the particular ceiling thus resulting in considerable loss of materials. Iron shell supports which can be used without braces, even when they are adjustable were not used to any great extent up to the present time, inasmuch as they were too expensive and complicated, and could only be used for this purpose, so that the cost of obtaining the same was much too high as compared with their limited possibilities of use.

In order to overcome this drawback, according to the present invention, a clamp is provided for assembly of the shell supports, which clamp consists of upper and lower plates of the same width provided with turned-over lateral flange portions or side edges, and connected with each other by two or more threaded bolts and nuts, in which connection the distance between the threads and the other ends of the bolts, and the distance between each marginal edge and the next bolt is equal to the height and thickness or a multiple of the height and thickness but component beam members used in the assembly of the support. In the manufacture of the support, one or more clamps may be used, depending on the length of the support and on the length and width, respectively, of the solid ceiling which is to be constructed. The component beam members used can be of any desired kind, but preferably there are used light profile beams of strip steel, preferably having a U-shaped cross-section, which also may have bent-in edges, and which arev available at large building supply houses, and. have been used in the past as scaffolding planks or the like. Use can always be made of existing component beam members, and the builders need only, in addition, obtain the clamps in accordance with th invention in order to produce the assembled shell supports. As already stated, it is, of course, possible to use also other profile beam members which do not have a U-shaped crosssection, in which case the sole prerequisite is that they can be clamped into the clamp or clamps.

By adjustment of the individual component beam members of the shell support, the length of the shell support can be adapted to any span and held firm by clamp Therefore, in addition to the large number of possibilities for the use of the component profile beam members of which the shell support consists, and. the simple manner of connection, there. is also achieved an adjust- .ment of the shell support to the lengths required without the supports having to be cut or made to definite lengths.

In the drawing, there is shown one embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a shell support;

Fig. 2 is a section on a larger :scale alon h line IIII of Fig. 1.

In accordance with the embodiment given by way of example, the framework support consists of two outer parallel profile beam members 'I and 2, of U-shaped cross-section, having bent-in edges, and two inner profile beam members 3 and s, which can be shifted in any desired manner with respect to profiles I and 2 and which advantageously are arranged in such a manner with respect to each other that they form an I-beam (Fig. 2). All profile supports 1 to 4 have the same dimensions with regard to their cross-section and also the same length. The rigid connection of the profile beam members for the. production of the assembled shell support is effected by clamps. Each clamp consists of an upper clamping plate 5 anda lower clamping plate 5. The upper clamping plate -5 is connected with two downwardly extended threaded bolts l and 8, the free ends of which extend through bores in the lower clamping plate 6., and onto which the nuts 9 and 10, which are preferably ring nuts for easier manipulation, can :be screwed. In order to prepare the shell support, the adjacent sides of the bolts 1' and 8 must be spaced a certain distance away from each other and from thebent-in edges 5a and 6a of the clamping plates, the distance between the bent-in edges to and Ba and thebo'lts l and 3, respectively, being equal to the width of the light profiles l to 4 placed on edge, and the distance between the two bolts I and 8 bein twice this amount.

The assembly of the shell carrier is effected in the following manner. First of all, the two outer light profiles I and 2 are placed on edge and made firm with respect to each other by an end clamp I! so that the two light profiles l and 2 are inserted between the bolts 1 and. 8 on the one hand, and the bent-in edges 5a and 6a. of the clamping plates 5 and 6 on the other hand. Then, the annular nuts 9 and III are tightened. Then, two further clamps l2 and I3 are pushed over the two parallel profile beams l and 2 and one end of the inner light profiles 3 and 4 is inserted in the space between bolts 1 and 8 of these two clamps in such a manner that they form an I-beam. Then, annular nuts 9 and In of clamps l2 and I3 are tightened after the light profiles l and 2 on the one hand and the light profiles 3 and 4, on the other hand, have been previously pushed towards each other in such a manner that their total length corresponds to the required length of the false-work support. If this length of two light profiles is not suflicient to span the ceiling which is to be provided with a shell support, the inner profile beam members corresponding to beam members 3 and 4 can be inserted on the left end (in Fig. 1) of the clamp II with beam members I and 2, but two clamps must also be provided on this end of the beam members I and 2. However, as shown in Fig. 1, two additional clamps l4 and 15 may be pushed orplaoed on the free ends of beam members 3 and 4, and then two parallel external beam members 16 and I! are inserted in these clamps l4 and [5. The ends of these two beam members 16 and 11 are held together by a clamp 18. The upper clamping plates 5 of the individual clamps are provided with a horizontally extending portion 5b and this extending portion 52), in the case of the two end clamps H and I8 is directed outwards and projects with its entire surface above and beyond the end edges of the beam members I and 2 and i6 and H respectively. These projections 5b serve as resting surfaces for supporting the shell support on the masonry work which has been constructed so that it is no longer necessary to use special additional vertical supports. In principle, it sufiices if the two end clamps H and 18 are provided with the projection 5b but it is also advantageous for reasons of production if all clamps are provided in the same manner with this projection.

By means of the type of clamps described, it is possible, without any difficulty, to use commercial, unmachined light profiles of steel strips,

particularly of U-shaped or I-shaped cross-section, as component beam members for the assem bly of the shell supports, in which connection the U-shaped light profiles have the advantage that they can be used not only as parts of the shell support, but can also be used as a substitute for shell boards, scaifold, etc. By the shell support in accordance with the invention, it is possible for the structural elements to serve other purposes, so that it is economical to work with such shell supports.

Inasmuch as the shell supports extend from wall to wall, additional braces within the space are no longer necessary.

Modifications may be made in carrying out the present invention, without departing from the spirit and scope thereof, and we are to be limited only by the appended claims.

We claim:

1. A clamp for assembling a symmetrical transverse structural member of adjustable length, said structural member comprising at least four component beam members of the same rectangular overall cross-sectional dimensions, said structural member having a cross-section including at least two of said beam members at all points throughout its length and at least four beam members in the portion thereof held together by said clamp, said clamp comprising: an upper plate member having two downwardly extending parallel bolts threaded at their lower end portions fixedly secured thereto, the adjacent sides of said bolts being spaced from each other to hold two of said beam members slidably therebetween while preventing appreciable rotation thereof, said upper plate member having two downwardly extending lateral flange portions comprising inner fiat beam engaging surfaces parallel to the axes of said bolts and perpendicular to a plane passing through said axes, each beam engaging surface being spaced from the nearest bolt to hold one beam member slidably between said surface and said bolt while preventing appreciable lateral movement of the upper portion of said beam member; a lower plate member having apertures therein adapted forpassage of said bolts therethrough and two upwardly extending lateral flange portions comprising inner fiat beam engaging surfaces, said beam engaging surfaces of said lower plate member being substantially coplanar with said beam engaging surfaces of said upper plate member when said bolts are passing through said apertures; and two nuts adapted for engagement with said threaded portions of said bolts, whereby said lower plate may be drawn upwardly to clamp said beam members between said upper and lower plates.

2. A clamp according to claim 1, wherein said upper plate member further comprises a horizontally extending portion extending beyond said clamp longitudinally with respect to said structural member and adapted to be positioned beyond an end of said structural member for engagement with a supporting surface for said structural, member.

WILLY STAHN.

I-IERMANN WANDKE.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number 

